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Ontario faces huge green power subsidy costs, report says.

Fraser Institute — April 19, 2012

Consumers in Ontario could face up to C$18.2bn ($18.28bn) in additional power costs over a 20-year period due to the province’s policy of subsidizing renewable energy, according to a new study from the Fraser Institute, a leading Canadian public policy think-tank.

It estimates that commercial and industrial users will bear C$625m more each year, while residential consumers could pay an extra C$285m. The report anticipates that industries will respond to ever-increasing power rates by moving some operations to other countries, which could cost Canada 41,000 jobs over the next two decades.

“Many, if not most, of the jobs that the Ontario government claims will be created by its green energy initiative will be offset through the negative impacts of higher electricity prices,” says the report, A Sensible Strategy for Renewable Electrical Energy in North America.